Automatic railway signaling apparatus.



J. P. DE BRAAM.

AUTOMATIC RAILWAY SIGNALING APPARATUS.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 8, 1911.

Patented Nov. 26, 1912.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

INVENTdR:

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J. P. DB BRAAM.

AUTOMATIC RAILWAY SIGNALING APPARATUS.

- APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 8, 1911.

Patented Nov. 26, 1912.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

wiT/vEssEs J. P. DE BRAAM.

AUTOMATIC RAILWAY SIGNALING APPARATUS.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT. a, 1911.

1,045,504,, Patented NOV.26, 1912.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

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WITN'ESSESI f1 dd 6 m @,/M W Mfr/W to the locomotive.

NITED STAT-Es JACQUES rrnnnn DE. BRAAM, 0F rams, FRANCE.

AUTOMATIC RAILWAY SIGNALING APPARATUS.

Specification of L etters Patent. Application filed September 8, 1911. Serial No. 648,341.

Patented Nov. 26, 1912.

To all whom it mag concern:

Be it known that I, JAo UEs PIERRE DE BBAAM, a subject of the Queen of the Netherlands, residing at 5 rue -Daviond, Paris, France, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Automatic Railway Si gnaling Apparatus, of which the following is a specification.

This invention has for its object to provide an improved mechanism for operat ng automatic railway signaling apparatus (warnin and indicating devices) for stopping tralns before a danger signal.

In the. accompanying drawings.:Figure 1 is an end elevation, and Fig. 2 is a side.

elevation of the known parts of the apparatus to which the present invention is applied. Figs. 3, 4 and 5 are vertical sectional views through the center'of the device showing three different positions of the improved mechanism, the pawl 10 and the rod]; being shown in elevation. Fig. 6 is a partial plan corresponding to Fig. 3.

This invention is applicable more par-.

ticularly to the class of apparatus described in the specifications of French Patents Nos. 371536, 376264, 407840; German Patents Nos. 185325, 195786, and British Patents Nos. 25298 and 25300 of 1907, which allow of operating the air brakes of a train at the same time as visible and audible signals when through inattention or accident the en-- gine driver has passed a. distant signal (warning signal) or a danger signal (complete stoppage) without slackening speed or stopping his train. In these known apparatus, the operation of the cock mounted on the main pipe of the air grake, and of all the indicating devices, is e ected as shown in the lower parts of Figs. 1 and '2, by means of tappets c which are arranged on the track d and are raised or lowered by the points man according as the corresponding signal is intended to show line clear? or danger. For the purpose of operating the cockand the several indicating devices, the tappets' a are engaged by an arrangement of levers e keyed on a shaft f carried in bearings g fixed The rotation of the shaft f produces, accordin to its direction the movement of a rod 5 y means of one or other of the links h '(Fig. 1). This. rod z actuates through suitable connections (compvising if required a flexible part a, Fi .3

opi wsing spring I), and connected to operof the brake warning devices;

signal.

a rod 1) under the influence of an ating mechanism which normally keeps the brake cock closed and also holds the warning devices in their normal running positions. r

The present invention consists in improvements in this operating mechanism which is designed to perform the following functions to effect on the passage of the levers e on to a first tappet, a first partial opening cock, or more accurately speaking, a partial rotation of the brake valve and of the actuating shaft, of the then on the passage'of the sad levers e on to a second tappet, the complete opening of the cock simultaneously with a greater rotation of the actuating shaft of the warning devices. The im-- proved operating mechanism as well as the known'apparatus referred to above is also designedto allow of the return of the cock and the warning devices into their normal running position, by operating by hand the shaft for actuating these devices; and finally after the complete opening of the cock and the greater movement of the warning devices,

of returning these parts by hand into their normal position on passing the danger The improved mechanism performs all these functions with complete certainty by extremely simple means.

The shaft j for actuating the indicating, warning and recording devices and thejcock valve are operated. automatically in the known way by a coiled spring 0?. attached at one end to the said shaft'and at its other end to the casing 0 in which the shaft rotates. This spring is kept normally in tension by the engagement of the improved operating mechanism which is operated by the, levers when they encounter the tappets arranged on the track. Each disengagement of the improved mechanism allows the spring to expand and turn the shaft 7'.

According to the present invention the operating mechanism comprises a disk In keyedon the shaft j and provided with a nose m projecting from its periphery. Normally when the devices are at rest (the brake cock closed, and the signal showing line clear) the nose m bears against the end 6 of the rod b which is kept lifted by its opposing spring 6'. The coiled spring n tends to hold the disk in this bearing position.

A pawl 72 is mounted by means of an elongated hole 72 on a pin 9 carried by two side -The auxiliary pawl 11. is then opposite notch?) but outside of it.

pieces 1" projecting from the casing or from a socket 0" that serves to guide the rod 6.

Two springs 8 attached at one end to the side pieces 1' at the other end to a pin 19 carried by the nose 7) of the pawl, have a constant tendency to raise this nose and keep it bearing onthe disk 7:. These springs also have a tendency to keep the pawl by means of the bottom of the hole 72 bearing against the ping. The pawl p has a slot 39 in which the end of the rod b works freely. u is an auxiliary pawl which a spring a tends constantly to push toward a notch b in the head of the rod b. This pawl u is pivoted'on a pin 2. between the sides of the slot p in the plane of the axis of the head of the rod 6.

Normally the parts are in the positions shown in Figs. 3 and6, the nose 6 of the rod 1) bearing against the nose at of the disk k while the nose 1) of the pawl p bears against the circular portion of the disk lit. t e

When the arrangement of levers e encounters a first tappet a raised by the operation of the distant signal, the rod 6 is pulled down and in descending compresses the opposing spring I). The nose I) of this rod escapes the nosem of the ates this disk, thus allowing the spiral spring n to expand and rotate the shaft. 7' in. the direction of the arrow (Fig. 3). But the disk 70 in rotating also encounters the nose p of the pawl 77 which it tends to move along with it. The moving along of the pawl 12 which is possible owing to the elongated hole 77 takes place until the outer end of this hole abuts against the pin (1. In this movement of the pawl 12, the auxiliary pawl u is likewise moved to the right and has become engaged in the notch b of the rod 6.

The parts then occupy the position shown in Fig. 4:, the nose 7) being heldby its opposing spring against the circular portion of the disk is.

By means of a hand lever w, the engine driver can operate the shaft 7' in the reverse direction to that of the arrow (Figs. 3 and 4) and thus return the parts into the position shown in Fig. 3.

Owing to the rotation due to the shaft y which has been interrupted by the engagement of the nose 7; with the nose mof the disk is, there corresponds to the "position shown in Fig. 4, a partial opening of the brake cock and a suitable operation of the warning devices. The return into the position shown in Fig. 3 closes the brake cock and replaces the warning devices into the normal position of line clear. If, after the parts have returned into their normal positions, the engine driver neglects to stop his train before a danger signal (home signal at danger) the levers 6 depending disk k and liber-- from the locomotive will encounter successively two tappets 0 arranged a short distance one from the other; The encounter with the first tappet 0 causes, as hereinbefore described, the parts to move from the-normal position (Figs; 3 and 6) into the position shown in second tappet produces a rocking of the levers e and a fresh pull on the rod 6. In

the descending movement of the rod 6 resulting therefrom, the latter encounters the auxiliary pawl 10 engaged in the notch b and it moves with it this pawl it which owing to its flattened back or shoulder is prevented from rocking toward the right. The

result is that the main pawl 79 pivots on the Fig. 4. The encou'f er with thepin q, and the nose 70 escapesagam the nose I m of the disk is. Consequently, the shaft 7' is able to continue its movement under the action of the coiled spring a, and this continuation of movement produces a complete opening of the brake cock, and the operation of the various warning and recording devices. The latter cause in the known way the notice danger signal to appear in front of the engine driver, and if necessary they break.a leaden seal and cause a whistle to sound, while they record the committed act of'neglect. At the same time the complete opening of the brake cock has caused an automatic stoppage of the train.

The return of the parts into the normal position is effected by a movement imparted in the desired direction to the shaft j, for the purpose of tensioning the spring a, while by the action of the return springs s 'the pawl 17 is returned into the position shown in Fig. 3, whereby the auxiliary pawl u is at the same time disengaged from the notch 6 The rod 6 had already been returned into its normal position by the opposing spring b immediately after passing the tappets.

- It is easyto perceive that the two successive disengagements necessary for producing at will a partial opening of the brake cock with the operation of the warning devices when the locomotive arrives in front of the distant signal, or a complete opening of the brake cock with a corresponding operation of the warning devices when the locomotive passes over two consecutive ta pets in front of a signal at danger, are e ected by means of a single engagement secured by a set of springs. In fact theengagement of the nose of the pawl p with the nose m of the disk 70 is reestablishedafter a first disengagement, and it is a fresh disengagement of the nose p from the nose m which causes the partial opening of the cock to pass into the complete opening of the same.

In the known operating mechanism of the class specified, the disengagement once produced for the partial opening of the cock is not reestablished and therefore in order to produce the passing of the cock from its partially open position into its completely open position, it is necessary to have recourse to the use of other parts under the action of other opposing springs.

Having now described my invention what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is 1. In apparatus of the class described, in combination, a shaft foe-controlling the train mechanism, a spring tending to rotate said shaft, a disk secured to said shaft and provided with a projection, means normally engaging said projection to hold said disk and said shaft against rotation, movable means adapted to be actuated to render said holding means inoperative, whereby said shaft and said disk will be rotated by said spring, a pawl normally in the pat-h of said projection and adapted to be engaged thereby, whereby rotation of said disk and said shaft is arrested, and means cooperating with the aforesaid parts for rendering said pawl inoperative upon a second actuation of said first mentioned means, shaft and said disk will be further rotated by said spring.- v 2. In apparatus of the class described, in combination, a shaft for controlling the train mechanism, a spring tending to rotate said shaft, a disk secured to said shaft and provided with a projection, means normally engaging said projection to'holdsaid disk and said shaft against rotation, movable means adapted to be actuated to render said holding means inoperative, whereby said shaft and said disk will be rotated by said spring, a pawl normally in the path of said projection and adapted to be engaged thereby, whereby rotation of said disk and said whereby said a shaft is arrested, said pawl being mounted to move bodily as it is engaged by said projection, and means carried by said pawl adapted to be movedby the bodily move ment of the pawl into operative relation with said first mentioned means, whereby upon a second actuation of said first mentioned means, said pawl will be rendered inoperative and said disk and said shaft will be further rotated by said spring.

3. In apparatus of the class described, in combination, a shaft for controlling the train mechanism, a spring tending to rotate said shaft, a disk secured to said shaft and provided with a projection, a notched rod normally engagingsaid projection tovhold said disk and said shaft against rotation, movable means adapted to be actuated to render said rod inoperative, whereby said shaft and said disk will be rotated by said spring, a pawl normally in the path of said projection and adapted to be engaged thereby, whereby rotation of said disk and said shaft is arrested, said pawl being mounted to move bodily as it is engaged by said projection, and an auxiliary pawl carried by said pawl adapted to be moved by the bodily movement of the pawl into operative relation with the notch in said rod, whereby upon a second actuation of said rod, said first mentioned pawl will be rendered inoperative and said disk and said shaft will be further rotated by said spring.

In testimony whereof I have aflixedmy signature in presence of two witnesses.

JACQUES PIERRE DE BRAAM. Witnesses:

'LOUIS GARDET,

HENRI MONIN. 

